More than a third of young adults lived at their parents\u2019 home in 2012, the highest rate in at least four decades, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center.<\/p>\n
Thirty-six percent of America\u2019s so-called Millennial generation \u2013 young adults aged 18 to 31 \u2013 lived at home last year, compared with 32 percent in 2007, prior to the Great Recession. In 2009, the year the recession officially ended, 34 percent of Millennials lived at home.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe steady rise in the share of young adults who live in their parents\u2019 home appears to be driven by a combination of economic, educational and cultural factors,\u201d the Pew report states. <\/p>\n
Key among those factors are declining employment, rising college enrollment, and declining marriage rates, according to the report.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think part of this trend is indeed a reflection of the weak labor market and difficult job prospects, says Richard Fry, the report\u2019s author. \u201cMore young adults are living with their mom or dad, but nationally, jobholding hasn\u2019t really increased much.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2012, 63 percent of 18-to-31-year-olds had jobs, compared with 70 percent in 2007. Millennials without jobs were much more likely to live at home than their employed counterparts: 45 percent to 29 percent, according to the report.<\/p>\n